Laboratory of Systemic Genomics and Plant Mobilomics

Our laboratory was established in 2022 and brought together young scientists who are passionate about studying mobile elements of the plant genome. Mobile elements are the most important natural drivers of plant evolution and breeding. Recent studies have shown that due to the rare activity of mobile elements, many useful signs of agricultural plants have appeared. Using modern methods of bioinformatics, molecular biology, genomic editing and nanopore sequencing, we investigate mobile elements in the genomes of agricultural (tomato, sunflower, soybean, rapeseed) and model (arabidopsis and tobacco) plants. The ultimate goal of our research is to better understand the biology of mobile elements, their life cycle and use this knowledge to develop new biotechnological methods to accelerate the creation of new plant genotypes. In 2023, we introduced a new term, biological mutagenesis (Kirov, IJMS, 2023). Biological mutagenesis is the process of producing mutations in the genome using biological agents, including mobile elements, viruses, RNA and proteins. We are currently developing a platform for biological mutagenesis of agricultural plants through controlled and temporary activation of mobile elements. This will allow introducing new features into existing plant varieties, as well as obtaining new cultivated plants with unusual morphology and taste characteristics.